Emily Osborne's News Articles

Karl Rove’s American Crossroads Turns the “War on Women” on Obama

Karl Rove's American Crossroads is hoping to help the GOP regain ground among women, particularly Latina women. According to a Gallup poll President Barack Obama has a 48 point advantage among Latino voters, while a CNN poll finds that women voters back Obama over Romney by a 16 point margin. Now Rove's Super PAC is trying to make inroads with these voters, releasing an online ad that attempts to turn the "War on Women" charge on Obama. The Super PAC is testing the video in focus groups, with an eye toward potentially creating a 30-second TV ad, according to CNN.

NPR, NBC Use One Guy for Small Biz Opposition to ACA and Fail to Disclose his NFIB Ties

With millions of small business owners in the United States, why can multiple news outlets find only one small business owner to say that federal health care reform will negatively impact business?

Obamacare on Trial: Wendell Potter's Tips for Courtwatchers

  • Topics: Corporations
  • In 2010, Congress passed the Patient Protection and Affordable Health Care Act better known as "Obamacare." This week, the U.S. Supreme Court will rule on the constitutionality of the massive health care reform law. Center for Media and Democracy's (CMD) Wendell Potter, who left his comfortable job as an insurance industry insider to blow the whistle on industry abuses and deadly corporate spin, gives courtwatchers and consumers a list of things to watch out for when the ruling comes down from the nation's highest court.

    STUDY: Right Wing Spins Media with "Job-Killer" Claims

    The media is indiscriminately using the term "job-killer" to describe government policies and programs, but without verifying or substantiating the claims, according to a new study. Use of the phrase by major media outlets has exploded since President Obama took office and rapidly circulates throughout the press with little or no fact checking of the "job killer" allegations.

    Paid Sick Leave Will Make You Healthier and Wealthier, Study Says

    A recent study says allowing workers paid sick leave could account for healthier families and more than one billion dollars in savings -- but the American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC) and Wisconsin Governor Scott Walker are fighting it.

    According to a report released by the Institute for Women's Policy Research (IWPR), two-fifths of private sector employees go without access to paid sick leave, accounting for 1.3 million more hospital emergency department visits and delayed medical care for workers and their families.

    Can Brats Build Bridges in Wisconsin?

    On June 12, Wisconsin Governor Scott Walker held the "Beer and Brat Summit," touted as an effort to bring lawmakers from both parties together, although some lawmakers from both sides of the aisle found reasons not to attend this PR event. Brats are a Wisconsin tradition but even they have become politicized over the past year with one of the major brat makers financially backing Walker's political campaign.

    Walker's PR Plan to Use Beer and Brats

    Ninety-eight state lawmakers -- 60 Republicans, 37 Democrats and one independent -- said they planned to attend the event, which offered a spread of beer, brats, and other specialties from the Dairy State.

    Are Wisconsin's Deer in the Headlights?

    This past year Governor Scott Walker imported "Dr. Deer" or Dr. James Kroll all the way from Texas -- and asked him to conduct a review of Wisconsin's deer management program and policy. Kroll holds the title of White-Tailed Deer Trustee, a position created by an executive order from Walker. Under this position Kroll will provide analysis and recommend changes to Wisconsin's deer management program. Kroll, who considers hunting on state-managed game lands "the last bastion of communism," is being paid up to $125,000 dollars for less than a year's full-time work. Kroll released his interim report in March with his final report due in June. Deer hunting advocates are concerned that his final report could somehow advance a privatized vision of Wisconsin's deer management in ways that could disadvantage a public hunting model and favor a game farm model.

    Koch-Funded "Americans For Prosperity" Rallies at WI Capitol

    Americans for Prosperity (AFP), the Koch-funded astroturf group, held a Tax Day rally in Madison on April 14. This year's Tax Day rally was dramatically smaller than the 2009/2010 rallies at the Capitol and even smaller than last year's rally which took place in the sleet and the snow at the height of the Wisconsin Uprising. With the sun shining down on this year's rally, this year's themes included the supposedly fake "War on Women" and claims about how well Governor Scott Walker's policies are working for Wisconsin.

    Wisconsin's chapter of AFP has been very supportive of Walker and his policies over the past year, running ads supporting the passage of Walker's union-busting "Budget Repair Bill," that sparked unprecedented protests in February and March of 2011. In more recent months, they have also partnered with the conservative belief tank, the MacIver Institute, to launch an expensive TV ad and Internet campaign called "It's Working," suggesting that Walker's collective bargaining measure and budget cuts have been successful.

    The “99% Spring” Aims to Train 100,000 Activists

  • Topics: Democracy
  • More than 60 progressive groups are uniting behind the effort known as "99% Spring" and are planning to train 100,000 people across the country in methods of non-violent direct action.

    During the week of April 9 – 15th, leaders from the groups will converge to train young activists to tell the story of what happened to the national economy, learn the history of non-violent direct action, and use that knowledge to take action on campaigns to win change. Lead organizing groups include the United Auto Workers, AFL-CIO, National Peoples Action, The International Brotherhood of Teamsters, Rebuild the Dream, Moveon.org, and UNITE, the hospitality industry union. Following in the spirit of Martin Luther King, Jr. and Ghandi, the effort hopes to give young activists the tools to organize actions and follow in the footsteps of the Wisconsin Uprising and the Occupy Wall Street Movement.  In some areas the trainings are supported by OWS, in other areas they are not.

    Arizona’s ALEC Leader Wants Your Boss to Make Decisions About Your Contraception Coverage

    -- by Mary Bottari and Emily Osborne

    One of the most extreme proposals yet in a recent spate of attacks on women's reproductive health comes out of Arizona. American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC) Arizona State Chair, Rep. Debbie Lesko (R), is sponsoring a new bill that allows employers to pry into the sexual life of female employees.

    The Arizona Legislature is considering Lesko's new bill which would grant all employers, not just those that are religiously affiliated, the option to exclude contraceptives from health insurance coverage. The only exception is if a woman can "prove," by disclosing private medical information, that she is taking the contraceptives for other medical reasons.

    Syndicate content